Winchester Restaurants and Dining

(Winchester, Hampshire, England, UK)

Many of the local restaurants in Winchester enjoy using fresh local Hampshire produce wherever possible, with the dining menu often reflecting the seasons. Some eateries are lucky enough to serve up both rainbow trout and wild brown trout, caught from the River Itchen itself.

Other restaurants use watercress in a number of dishes, since the city of Winchester is famous for its extensive watercress beds, which span the Meon Valleys and River Itchen. Pubs in Winchester are another good option for those dining out and tend to specialise in hearty Hampshire fare, serving everything from ploughman's lunches to steaks, succulent sausages and a host of seafood, which is often washed down with a pint or two of Horndean Special Bitter, brewed nearby in the village of Horndean, next to Waterlooville.

Where to Eat

Most good tourist attractions in the city come with their very own dining opportunities and Winchester Cathedral is no exception to this. The Cathedral Cafe is located at the Visitors Centre on Inner Close and provides a good choice of refreshments and traditional Hampshire cream teas.

If you are a lover of seafood and fancy splashing out on a meal to remember, then the Loch Fyne Fish Restaurant on Jewry Street is certainly the place to come. This Tudor-style eatery dates back more than 500 years and is without question the finest seafood restaurant in Winchester, with its lobster platter being particularly delicious. Also located on Jewry Street is Mr. So, a leading Chinese restaurant specialising in Cantonese and Szechwan dishes.

Close by, the High Street and The Square provide further dining establishments and restaurants likely to be of interest. The Old Monk on the High Street is one such venue and this popular pub has an especially attractive beer garden, overlooking the riverside.

For light lunches in this part of Winchester, the Cafe Monde is a safe bet, as is the Eclipse Inn, which occupies a charming 16th-century rectory building associated with St. Lawrence's Church. The Elipse Inn is known for its Halloumi cheese baps, salmon fishcakes, and steak and kidney pies, and each Sunday its roast dinners are the best you are likely to find in Winchester, being accompanied by up to 14 vegetables.

There are of course plenty of fast-food restaurants and eateries to choose between in Winchester. Dining out need not be expensive and Pizza Express on Bridge Street, next to the High Street and Magdalen Hill, is perfect for families.

Foodies visiting Winchester should certainly look out for the famous farmers' market, which takes place twice a month (second Sunday and last Sunday) on Middle Brook Street and always attracts in excess of 100 local producers. And of course, who can forget the Hampshire Food Festival each July and its multitude of tasting events.